By Julia Harte
Sept 29 (Reuters) – A Venezuelan man shot by a federal immigration agent on September 20 in Austin, Texas, appeared in federal court on Tuesday after being charged with assaulting, resisting, interfering, and impeding a federal officer, the Justice Department said in a press release.
The complaint against Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, citing footage from a camera worn by one of the ICE officers who pulled him over that day, says that when they asked him to step out of his car, Garces Perez drove away, striking one officer in the torso with his car’s side mirror. The video has not been released publicly.
That officer, who was not wearing a camera, chased Garces Perez down in his car and soon caught up with him, according to the complaint, which was filed on Monday in US District Court for the Western District of Texas.
At that point, Garces Perez tried to drive into the officer, who fired on him with his pistol, the officer alleges in the complaint.
Publicly available videos of the incident do not show the shooting, but do show Garces Perez injured in the car afterward. Garces Perez told the DHS official investigating the case that he was shot after an officer drove his SUV into his car, spinning it around, according to the complaint.
Garces Perez’s attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch said in an Instagram post on Sunday that her client still has the bullet in his body and a fractured clavicle, and that his supporters are concerned he could experience sepsis and permanent damage if he does not get surgery soon.
The Department of Homeland Security has said he is receiving adequate medical care.
While the Trump administration has brought criminal charges against at least 851 people for attacking or impeding federal officers, a Reuters review of federal court records in July found that 31% of the completed cases had ended in dismissal, compared to the 8% dismissal rate of all federal criminal cases.
Garces Perez is separately scheduled to appear before a federal immigration judge in Texas on Wednesday for a hearing on whether he can stay in the country.
(Reporting by Julia Harte; Editing by Jesse Mesner-Hage and Daniel Wallis)
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